"His strength is truly formidable." Although Pau Gasol completed a dunk after turning, he was still surprised by Link's strength. If it were just pure brute force in a backdown, he might not be able to break through Link's defense.
For inside players, the most threatening part of a low-post backdown is the first burst of power. By the second push, the strength will sharply decrease. If they can't advance deep enough, inside players with poor touch near the rim often pass the ball out.
At the same time, Pau Gasol also noticed Link's battle-ready eyes, like a beast about to devour him whole.
This made Pau Gasol a little flustered, but then he thought, the opponent isn't fast enough, and neither am I slow, so how much threat can he pose to me?
Hmm, no need to scare myself.
...
...
Moment of Dominance: Sharpshooter Lv2 activated.
Link held the ball at the top of the arc. Haywood, lacking low-post scoring ability, stepped up for a screen. Pau Gasol opted for a half-squat drop coverage, stepping up one pace from under the basket. White Chocolate was caught on the screen. Link dribbled one step to the left, and after a brief space appeared, Link didn't hesitate, directly taking a Three-Point Shot.
"Swish!" The Three-Point Shot went in cleanly.
Such a decisive jump Three-Point Shot was relatively rare in that era. After all, most teams at that time created offensive opportunities for teammates by using low-post isolation to attract double-teams and help defense.
Seeing Link make the Three-Point Shot, the Grizzlies didn't seem to be in a hurry. After all, Link's three-point percentage in the past few preseason games had been very poor. Not only did it not hurt opponents, but instead, they could easily convert into scoring with Offensive Rebounds after his misses.
But they seemed to have forgotten one thing...
Link's three-point misses were because when he shot off the dribble, a hand was always on him. Shooting off the dribble without this kind of physical contact was only slightly harder than his usual training.
"Swish!" Link repeated the feat, hitting another Three-Point Shot. In less than two minutes, Link made three consecutive Three-Point Shots.
A small surge of 9:2 directly forced the Grizzlies to call a timeout.
"So accurate!"
"Link!"
On the way back to the bench, Haywood, also a rookie, said excitedly.
"Hehe, buddy, your screen was also very good." While Link was pleased, he didn't forget to 'pua' his blue-collar teammate.
Haywood immediately grinned sheepishly. Clearly, his purpose in praising Link was also to hope Link could give him a little emotional value.
...
...
During the timeout, Grizzlies head coach "Sidney Lowe" held his tactical board and redeployed his defensive strategy.
"Pau Gasol, you need to delay that kid... don't let him get easy three-point opportunities again," Sidney Lowe said.
"Mhm." Pau Gasol nodded.
In addition, Sidney Lowe had Shane Battier help defend and harass Link, who might try to drive strongly.
The timeout ended, and the game resumed. Link's Moment of Dominance: Sharpshooter Lv2 had already expired. Alas, there was nothing to be done; the biggest opponent of Dominance Moment was the timeout. Coaches with excellent in-game adjustments would use timeouts to disrupt a player's offensive rhythm.
The Grizzlies started with an offense. Pau Gasol suddenly rolled down after a screen, once again fooling Brendan Haywood. Link quickly switched defenses. Pau Gasol was not only tall but also had long arms, so Link naturally chose his defensive position between him and the basket.
Pau Gasol, half a step from the restricted area, received the ball and, with a "thump!", first bounced the ball, using inertia to generate force for confrontation. This is a common move for many big men; they must push the ball down with both hands, otherwise, insufficient dribbling ability will lead to losing the ball in the subsequent confrontation.
Indeed...
That's right.
Yao Ming also had this habit.
The push was full of force, and even Link, who was prepared, was pushed back. The weight difference between the two was indeed significant. However, in the next instant, as Pau Gasol turned to face the basket and raised the ball, the stumbling Link suddenly thrust out his 221cm long arm.
"Slap!" With a precise and fierce swipe, though it didn't dislodge the ball, it changed the ball's position in his palm. Pau Gasol's fluid layup bounced right off the rim.
"Good defense!" On the bench, Michael Jordan, wearing his training uniform, couldn't help but stand up to applaud and cheer for his little brother.
After speaking...
Michael Jordan also looked back at the others on the bench, especially Connet Alexander, and said, "See, this is how a smaller guy defends a bigger guy: by swiping at the moment he raises the ball."
"It's not hard at all. I just told Link once, and he already mastered it."
Connet Alexander silently cursed, "MMP."
"WTF! You two monsters... how can mere mortals like us compare?"
"Do I have your speed? Do I have Link's 221cm wingspan?"
Of course, Connet Alexander dared not voice these dissatisfactions to Michael Jordan, who was both a player and the team's general manager.
...
...
Link held the ball at the top of the arc. Haywood continued to step up for a screen. This screen was set very high, mainly to facilitate Link's off-the-dribble Three-Point Shot.
Pau Gasol chose to aggressively delay this time, not allowing Link an open shot after the screen. Link wasn't flustered; he lowered his center of gravity, took a quick first step, bursting forward to the right. Pau Gasol quickly retreated.
And Link, whose left foot had just landed, suddenly took a step-back. The entire motion wasn't particularly fast, but it was fluid enough.
Rookie Pau Gasol's footwork wasn't slow. He raised his long arms, lunging towards the jumping Link. If it were a shorter guard with that speed and shooting quickness, he would most likely be blocked by Gasol. But Link was a large-sized point guard, 24.5cm tall with a 221cm wingspan.
The basketball sailed over Pau Gasol's fingertips, but this shot was truly a pity. The rhythm of the motion was perfect, but luck seemed to be a bit lacking, as it bounced off the rim.
However, Laettner grabbed the Offensive Rebound under the basket. Link suddenly moved to the left, creating distance from Pau Gasol with an off-ball cut. After receiving the ball, with Pau Gasol rushing over, Link again took a Three-Point Shot off the dribble.
Pau Gasol gritted his teeth and desperately lunged forward.
It's difficult for inside players to maintain body balance in the air when closing out on guards, and Link's cylindrical body was both wide and tall.
"Beep!" The referee's whistle sounded at the same time.
The basketball also swished through the net.
This shot!
Directly made the home Washington Wizards fans shout:
"King!"
"King!"
"King!"
And-one!
3+1!!!
...
...
Pau Gasol, who was called for the foul, shook his head helplessly.
But at this moment, Link smiled and said, "Buddy, you don't think this shot of mine was just luck, do you?"
"Isn't it?" Pau Gasol retorted, unwilling to show weakness.
For this reason...
Link continued to use screens to find mismatches for isolation against Pau Gasol.
In the next offensive possession, after a screen, Link faced Pau Gasol, who didn't immediately delay, and pulled up for a shot. This one was very close, barely grazing his fingertips, but it still went in!
Link's five Three-Point Shots and scorching 19 points in a single quarter brought the atmosphere to a boiling point.
Soon, Link also helped Haywood double-team Gasol on defense, forcing a turnover.
"Roar!" Link let out a passionate roar.
This formed a stark contrast with the dejected and frustrated Pau Gasol.
This also made many of Link's "swing fans" exclaim, "The number one draft pick is still the number one draft pick; there's still a considerable gap in strength between the two."
However, the Grizzlies quickly substituted Pau Gasol out.
...
...
In the second half, theoretically, the team's absolute starters would not play.
But Link and Pau Gasol, the two strongest contenders for this year's rookie of the year, both wanted to leave a deep impression on the fans.
For this reason...
Both played the entire game.
What made Pau Gasol somewhat frustrated was that Link's highly difficult shots, which wouldn't go in against others, seemed to have a built-in GPS when facing him.
With 1 minute and 11 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Link drove to the basket for a forced layup. Although Pau Gasol's long arms interfered, distorting his motion and causing him to lose balance in the air, a casual toss of the ball, which went a meter above the top of the backboard, resulted in a precise high-altitude drop into the net.
"Beep!"
And-one!
2+1!!!
After making the free throw, Link's personal score reached 42 points.
Setting a new preseason scoring high for him.
Facing a 17-point deficit, the Grizzlies reluctantly chose to concede defeat.